Belarus (2004) | Sao Tome and Principe (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers |
2 provinces; Principe, Sao Tome
note: Principe has had self-government since 29 April 1995 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.3% (male 859,219; female 823,839)
15-64 years: 69.2% (male 3,469,926; female 3,662,203) 65 years and over: 14.5% (male 496,204; female 999,129) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
47.7% (male 39,857; female 38,859) 15-64 years: 48.28% (male 38,430; female 41,246) 65 years and over: 4.02% (male 3,034; female 3,608) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | cocoa, coconuts, palm kernels, copra, cinnamon, pepper, coffee, bananas, papayas, beans; poultry; fish |
Airports | 135 (2003 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 50
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.) |
total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 85
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.) |
- |
Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
1,001 sq km land: 1,001 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | more than five times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. | Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. Although independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The first free elections were held in 1991. |
Birth rate | 10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 42.74 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.976 billion
expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$58 million expenditures: $114 million, including capital expenditures of $54 million (1993 est.) |
Capital | Minsk | Sao Tome |
Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 209 km |
Constitution | 30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits | approved March 1990; effective 10 September 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
conventional short form: Belarus local long form: Respublika Byelarus' local short form: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form:
Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe conventional short form: Sao Tome and Principe local long form: Republica Democratica de Sao Tome e Principe local short form: Sao Tome e Principe |
Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR) | dobra (STD) |
Death rate | 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 7.54 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $851 million (2001 est.) | $268 million (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
the US does not have an embassy in Sao Tome and Principe; the Ambassador to Gabon is accredited to Sao Tome and Principe on a nonresident basis and makes periodic visits to the islands |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
Sao Tome and Principe does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a Permanent Mission to the UN, headed by First Secretary Domingos Augusto FERREIRA, located at 122 East 42nd Street, Suite 1604, New York, NY 10168, telephone [1] (212) 317-0533 |
Disputes - international | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $200 million in December 2000 under the HIPC program |
Economy - overview | Belarus' economy in 2003 posted 6.1 percent growth and is likely to continue expanding through 2004, albeit at a slower growth rate. The Belarusian economy in 2004 is likely to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprises. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. | This small poor island economy has become increasingly dependent on cocoa since independence 25 years ago. However, cocoa production has substantially declined because of drought and mismanagement. The resulting shortage of cocoa for export has created a persistent balance-of-payments problem. Sao Tome has to import all fuels, most manufactured goods, consumer goods, and a significant amount of food. Over the years, it has been unable to service its external debt and has had to depend on concessional aid and debt rescheduling. Sao Tome benefited from $200 million in debt relief in December 2000 under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. Considerable potential exists for development of a tourist industry, and the government has taken steps to expand facilities in recent years. The government also has attempted to reduce price controls and subsidies, but economic growth has remained sluggish. Sao Tome is also optimistic that significant petroleum discoveries are forthcoming in its territorial waters in the oil-rich waters of the Gulf of Guinea. Corruption scandals continue to weaken the economy. At the same time, progress in the economic reform program has attracted international financial institutions' support, and GDP growth will likely rise to at least 4% in 2001-02. |
Electricity - consumption | 26.69 billion kWh (2001) | 15.8 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 300 million kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 4.3 billion kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 24.4 billion kWh (2001) | 17 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
41.18% hydro: 58.82% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico de Sao Tome 2,024 m |
Environment - current issues | soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine | deforestation; soil erosion and exhaustion |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4% | mestico, angolares (descendants of Angolan slaves), forros (descendants of freed slaves), servicais (contract laborers from Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde), tongas (children of servicais born on the islands), Europeans (primarily Portuguese) |
Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999) | dobras per US dollar - 2390.04 (December 2000), 7,119.0 (1999), 6,883.2 (1998), 4,552.5 (1997), 2,203.2 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since December 2003), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Ivan BAMBIZA (since 25 May 2004), Anatoly TYUTYUNOV (since July 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in September 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4% |
chief of state:
President Miguel TROVOADA (since 4 April 1991) head of government: Prime Minister Guilherma Posser da COSTA (since 30 December 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 30 June and 21 July 1996 (next to be held NA July 2001); prime minister chosen by the National Assembly and approved by the president election results: Miguel TROVOADA reelected president in Sao Tome's second multiparty presidential election; percent of vote - Miguel TROVOADA 52.74%, Manuel Pinto da COSTA 47.26% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $3.2 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | cocoa 90%, copra, coffee, palm oil |
Exports - partners | Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003) | Netherlands 18%, Germany 9%, Portugal 9% (1998) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears Belarusian national ornamention in red | three horizontal bands of green (top), yellow (double width), and green with two black five-pointed stars placed side by side in the center of the yellow band and a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $178 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.1%
industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
23% industry: 19% services: 58% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.8% (2003 est.) | 3% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 1 00 N, 7 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay | - |
Heliports | 1 (2003 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 74,385 km
paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000) |
total:
320 km paved: 218 km unpaved: 102 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $40 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | machinery and electrical equipment, food products, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003) | Portugal 42%, US 20%, South Africa 6% (1998) |
Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 12 July 1975 (from Portugal) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | light construction, textiles, soap, beer; fish processing; timber |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
48.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 28.2% (2003 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CEEAC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 100 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 4.8 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | population mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and fishing
note: shortages of skilled workers |
Land boundaries | total: 2,900 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 29.55%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001) |
arable land:
2% permanent crops: 36% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 0% other: 61% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Portuguese (official) |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on Portuguese legal system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteliy (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004 (bi-election will be held March 2005 to fill one unfilled seat in the Palata Predstaviteliy); international observers widely denounced the October 2004 elections as flawed and undemocratic, based on massive government falsification; pro-Lukashenko candidates won every seat, after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Pretsaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
unicameral National Assembly or Assembleia Nacional (55 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 1998 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - MLSTP-PSD 56%, PCD 14.5%, ADI 29%; seats by party - MLSTP-PSD 31, ADI 16, PCD 8 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.57 years
male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
65.59 years male: 64.15 years female: 67.07 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 73% male: 85% female: 62% (1991 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Western Africa, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, straddling the Equator, west of Gabon |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
39 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 130,843 GRT/149,048 DWT ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 21, chemical tanker 1, container 3, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 5, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Force | Army, Navy, Security Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | $1 million (FY94) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 1.5% (FY94) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
34,205 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
18,043 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 86,716 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 12 July (1975) |
Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun:
Sao Tomean(s) adjective: Sao Tomean |
Natural hazards | NA | NA |
Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | fish, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -3.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]
note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active |
Independent Democratic Action or ADI [Carlos NEVES]; Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe-Social Democratic Party or MLSTP-PSD [Manuel Pinto Da COSTA]; Party for Democratic Convergence or PCD [Aldo BANDEIRA]; Democratic Renovation Party [Armindo GRACA]; other small parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 10,310,520 (July 2004 est.) | 165,034 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 22% (1995 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.11% (2004 est.) | 3.18% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Santo Antonio, Sao Tome |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 2, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 38,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 5,523 km
broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Christian 80% (Roman Catholic, Evangelical Protestant, Seventh-Day Adventist) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly
domestic: local - Minsk has a digital metropolitan network and a cellular NMT-450 network; waiting lists for telephones are long; local service outside Minsk is neglected and poor; intercity - Belarus has a partly developed fiber-optic backbone system presently serving at least 13 major cities (1998); Belarus' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: country code - 375; Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations |
general assessment:
adequate facilities domestic: minimal system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,071,300 (2003) | 3,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.118 million (2003) | 6,942 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | volcanic, mountainous |
Total fertility rate | 1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 6.02 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | none |